Finding My Light
by Snickers Lambchops
Summary: A story about Cloud and Aerith's search for one another! AerithCloud and a possibly a little YuffieLeon (Squall) Please read!
1. Past Nightmares

Finding My Light  
  
Disclaimer: All of this does not belong to me! I honestly swear it does not! Please don't sue me cause I need my money to buy a car when I'm sixteen! It belongs to Disney and Squaresoft!  
  
A/N: Hey! This is my first try at a Kingdom Hearts fic, so please be nice! Constructive criticism is welcome, but evil flames will just be used to roast my marshmallows for s'mores!  
  
~*~  
  
Aerith sat at one of the tables in the library with a book perched in her lap. Ever since she had glimpsed one of those "Heartless" things, she had been searching for information on other worlds. Ansem was studying the Heartless, but it seemed like he was having trouble. After all, his ultimate goal had to be to get rid of them (the king guest, Mickey Mouse, had foretold horrible destruction of this world and all worlds if they were not stopped), but the Heartless just seemed to multiply! Only she and Cloud besides Ansem had ever laid eyes on the Heartless and heard the wisdom of the mouse king, but Ansem had made the pair swear to never go anywhere near the ones without hearts again or reveal their knowledge to others.  
  
"It's too dangerous," he told them.  
  
Aerith and Cloud had told Yuffie and Squall of what they had seen, however, and ever since all had been searching for a way to rid the planet of the vermin. Yuffie and Squall trained together nonstop; they fought each other in mock battles that both seemingly equally won. Each morning they would rise to fight and not stop until the sun set. Cloud also trained, but in seclusion. He would train in the mornings alone, and he spent the afternoons in the library with Aerith, trying to fill himself with knowledge. It was funny, but she was the only one who Cloud seemed to open up to. They were both quiet and strong-willed. She and Cloud had met and become friends the day that he saved her from the falling bookcase in the library. He was her best friend and older brother; lately, she had been feeling funny around him though. But Aerith cast those thoughts from her mind as she took a long sip from her hot chocolate and explored another promising-looking book.  
  
~*~  
  
Two books later, Aerith felt a gentle tap on her shoulder and whipped around to see only Cloud behind her. She took shallow breaths; she had been so caught up in her search that she had forgotten about the real world.  
  
"Sorry," Cloud said solemnly while looking worried.  
  
Aerith offered him a shaky smile, "It's ok...I was just off in my thoughts...you know."  
  
"Yeah," he nodded, "Well, find anything interesting?"  
  
Aerith sighed and shook her head, "There's nothing here so far! I just know that there must be a book about other worlds! I remember Ansem saying something about a report a colleague had written with theories on other worlds and even some about our own! But I don't remember the author or the title, and Ansem wouldn't tell us who he was, he'd tell us to just forget about all of this, that he had it under control!"  
  
Cloud nodded his agreement and added, "We also know that he must be writing a detailed report about the Heartless he is studying. If we can get our hands on that, maybe we can be of more help."  
  
"But where would he hide it?" Aerith argued, "He'd have to put it someplace secret! Somewhere we'd never think to search!"  
  
"Or in a place that we would have to search endlessly to find it," Cloud retorted, his eyes gleaming with pride.  
  
"In the library!" she said incredulously, her eyes wide.  
  
"Yes," he smiled, "He knows we only seek the books with the topics that are related to what we saw and overheard, so he could have placed it in a book that had nothing to do with any of it!"  
  
"How will we search hundreds of books though," Aerith asked. She guessed that he had some sort of shortcut.  
  
"Well-" he began, but he was cut off by Yuffie who ran in panting.  
  
"The Heartless-are attacking," she coughed out. Aerith's heart stopped; they were too late. Cloud was surprised for only a minute before regaining his composure.  
  
Pushing Aerith in the direction of the ships that Cid had been experimenting with using the gummi blocks, he yelled at her, "Get to the ships! I have to go help Squall!" Yuffie had already left.  
  
"No! I can't leave you guys behind!" Aerith yelled clutching him tightly, but not crying. Cloud held her hands softly and looked into her eyes.  
  
"Aerith, go. Promise me...promise me...if this doesn't work out...that you'll leave this place, head to another planet, and look after yourself! Don't worry," he said tenderly, "I will come back to you someday, no matter what! Please, promise me!"  
  
Aerith nodded and hugged him, "I promise Cloud!" He smiled and kissed her before running off in the direction Yuffie had gone. Aerith watched him go before running towards the ships that Cid had constructed. She found Cid there, making last minute modifications at a hassled pace. He greeted her and instructed her to quickly board hers while he went back for the others.  
  
Aerith glared at him and said, "If you are going, then I'm going too!"  
  
"Fine," Cid relented after a pause, "but be very careful!"  
  
"I will."  
  
The two ran off to the scene of the battle. Cid grabbed Squall and Yuffie, dragging Squall away towards the ship, and saying that it was too late. Aerith spotted Cloud who was running towards them and started to run to him, but a great lightning bolt struck the ground between them and a great chasm appeared. Aerith watched in horror as Cloud was pulled up by the great wind of the storm. As he as thrown into a great ball of darkness he shouted, "Remember Aerith! No matter where you end up, I will find you!"  
  
Aerith's eyes filled with tears as Yuffie led her to her ship and the group all blasted off away from their dying world. Aerith looked back and said quietly, "I will wait for you Cloud...I know you will find me!"  
  
~*~  
  
Aerith bolted up as she awoke from her nightmare. Tears fell down her face; she had cried in her sleep. She turned over and let herself weep as sleep came to her and the haunting memories faded away. Once again before sleep claimed her, she promised to find a way to stop the Heartless and find Cloud.  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: So...was this good? Please review and tell me! Please! And thanks for even reading my story! But please review and tell me your thoughts and opinions! ~(_) Kitty Luver (_)~ 


	2. Cloud's Years

Finding My Light  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything! It all belongs to Disney and Squaresoft!  
  
A/N: In this chapter (and all future chapters until further notice) I'm going to call Squall Leon. *** This chapter has been rewritten!! ***  
  
~*~  
  
Cloud's eyes scanned the crowd in this new world. He had been traveling for many days, weeks, and months; he kept continuously searching for the one he had lost: Aerith.  
  
It had been three years since that day their planet had been destroyed; three years since he had made his last promise to her. He had held to that oath, traveling to many distant worlds, meeting many new peoples, and seeing countless shocking sights. He kept to himself though; he knew that copious amounts of creatures were clueless to the existence of other worlds, and explanations just led to too many personal questions that were awkward.  
  
Cloud glanced up at the sign: Olympus Coliseum. *Is Aerith here? Is this the place? Have I finally found her?* These questions surfaced in his head. He decided the only way to find out was to investigate, but in his heavy heart he knew that she wasn't there. *But where is she?*  
  
As he strode down the streets, people backed away from him with mild looks of fright upon their faces. His dark disposition was not hard to miss, even for the peasant folk. But Cloud was oblivious to this; therefore, he just continued to stroll around, searching for his lost light.  
  
Watching from a dark corner of a deserted alleyway, Hades considered Cloud with mild interest, contemplating his strength. Finally, deciding that Cloud fit the description of the one he needed, he confronted the wanderer.  
  
"Hey there! The name's Hades, lord of the underworld! Hi, nice to meet you! And you might be..."  
  
Cloud glared at Hades with emotionless eyes, "Go away," and continued his walk.  
  
"Ooohh! Rebel huh, well, have I got a deal for you-" Hades began quickly, following Cloud.  
  
Cloud whipped around, drew his sword, and raised it to Hades neck, "I told you to go away!" he thundered, "I'm not interested in any deal! I'm only interested in one thing, and I won't be distracted by anything else!"  
  
Hades backed up slowly, raising his arms in a defensive position, "Whoa, whoa, whoa kid-"  
  
"The name's Cloud," Cloud growled.  
  
Hades smiled, "See, we're getting somewhere!"  
  
"I'm not interested in your games!"  
  
Hades started to talk quickly, "Listen, Cloud, all I want to ask of you is a little favor...and in return, maybe I can help you...say, help you find Aerith?"  
  
Cloud gave the sword a small shake to remind the god of its presence, "How do you know about Aerith?"  
  
Hades took this as a good sign and put his arm around Cloud's shoulders, "I'm a god! It's my job to know these things! Now, why don't we go to my domain and settle on a contract!"  
  
Cloud broke free of Hades' grip, "What's the deal?"  
  
"Well, see, there's this guy named Hercules and he kind of keeps getting in the way of my plans. I've tried to get rid of him, but I've had some trouble, so I just figured that maybe you can get rid of him by, oh, say, killing him in the tournament!"  
  
Cloud silently stared at the god for a few minutes before saying, "And you'll find Aerith for me?"  
  
Hades grinned evilly, conjuring up a contract, "Consider it done! Just sign here..."  
  
Cloud gave Hades an intent look before taking the pen and signing his name on the bottom. As soon as he did, the contract and pen disappeared in a puff of smoke.  
  
"There! Now that that's done let's get you in the tournament!" Hades led Cloud to the sign-up place, grinning maliciously and muttering under his breath, "You're mine now, Hercules!"  
  
~*~  
  
AN: I know it was short, but it was a rewrite, so I'm sorry! I'm currently working on the next chapter, which will start at the time when Aerith and Company discover Sora, Donald, and Goofy! I hope to get it up soon, but my computer has been cuckoo lately, and the new one my dad got for me won't be here till Tuesday! :p Anyways, thanks to my reviewers:  
  
*Snowri Leonhart* *Mala* *Mandy138* *celest* *bek* *Alan Bates* *Serenity_Olus* *Emi-Thanks for reading this, even though you don't know anything about it! You're such a good friend!*  
  
I'm also sorry that chapters 1 and 2 were pretty much identical! It wasn't intentional; I just had a bad case of writer's block (like I do for my other story)! But, that's been cleared up, so have a happy Thanksgiving! And tell me the names of any Cloud/Aerith and Leon/Yuffie stories! I need to read more of them! Thanks!  
  
~(_)Kitty Luver(_)~ 


	3. Keyblade Master

Disclaimer: Look at the previous chapters. I owned nothing then, I own nothing now!!! *sobs*

  


A/N: I'm still alive! *watches as everyone groans, wishing that she had stopped writing* Sorry it took me awhile to update, but I've been stressing out over my band exam!!! But now, it's done and over with and I got an A! I probably won't update until Christmas break (December 18) because of my regular exams. Sorry! Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Happy Holidays!

  


~*~

  


"The Keyblade master has arrived!" Yuffie panted to Aerith as she ran in to the kitchen.

  


Aerith dropped the dish she had been washing and didn't bother to pick it up, "Where?"

  


"We don't know," Yuffie replied, grabbing some ninja supplies from her stores, "but we need you to find the king's messengers! Cid definitely saw the Keyblade master–says he's some boy named Sora–but we haven't got any leads on the king's messengers except that they're here!" Yuffie started to run out.

  


"Wait Yuffie!" Aerith called running after her, "Come help me! Leon's fine on his own!"

  


"I can't! I have to find Squall!" Yuffie shouted, "What if he does need my help?"

  


Aerith gave up and ran around, wondering what the messengers would look like. As she searched the alleyways and streets of the three districts, she smiled at the thought of Cloud. If the Keyblade master and king's messengers were truly here, then the worlds could be restored! She and Cloud would be returned to Hallow Bastion where they could live out their happily ever after! Not searching as hard anymore, she dreamed of seeing Cloud and her home again. The Keyblade bearer would restore everything, and her peaceful life could pick up where it left off. 

As she bumped into a bench however, Aerith scolded herself for not focusing and continued her search in earnest. After all, nothing could be corrected unless she found the king's messengers to bring to Leon and Yuffie. At the thought of the two, Aerith felt herself grin. They were perfect for each other; complete opposites, but opposites attract as they say! Now, if only she could get them to realize that they both belonged together...

  


A sudden noise jerked her out of her fantasies. She heard talking up ahead in the alleyway. Looking down the stretch of path, Aerith saw an odd looking duck and a tall dog. They seemed to be calling out Leon's name! Walking up to them quietly, she tapped the duck on the shoulder, startling him, "I'm sorry, but did the king send you?" Seeing their nods she smiled kindly, "Please, if you'll follow me, I'll lead to Leon!" She was one step closer to finding Cloud!

  


**

  


Yuffie ran up to Leon just in time to see the boy go unconscious after "beating" Leon. She grinned, "Getting a little rusty Squall?"

  


Leon scowled, "It's Leon! And anyways, I went easy on him. But this is bad...very bad..."

  


Yuffie's grin dimmed, "Yeah, let's take him back to the hotel. Aerith's probably waiting for us."

  


~*~

  


A/N: Ok, I know that this was short, and mostly already from the game, but I need to know if you want me to follow the game closely, or if I can break away and be creative! Either way, I don't care, but I'm just a little curious! Anyways, I haven't put much Leon/Yuffie in my stories, but I'm trying to start to SLOWLY introduce it! No one's complained, but I thought I should explain anyways! Please review and tell me what you think!! And thanks to all of my reviewers:

  


**Shadow 61**

**Jade Stellar**

**Serenity-Olus**

**bek**

**Emi**

**Alan Bates**

**celest**

**Mandy138**

**Mala**

**Snowri Leonhart**

**Kyp Durron**

**Little Skittles**

**goorigoorigoori**

**Hermisia**

  


Thanks to all!!!!!!!!! Happy Holidays (again)!!!!

  


~(_)Kitty Luver(_)~


	4. Cloud's Battle

Finding My Light

Chapter 4: Cloud's Battle

  


Disclaimer: No, I am not the happy owner of Kingdom Hearts. You can blame Squaresoft and Disney for my unhappiness since they're the owners.

  


A/N: I'M NOT DEAD! YAY! Anyways, sorry this chapter took a while, but I think I've got most of the story mapped out! I don't know how much of a plot it'll have, but I'm trying! My teachers are loading me with lots of homework, and my parents are bugging me about doing stuff at church, so I'm pretty busy! Hopefully these next chapters will get out quickly! So, enjoy!

  


~*~

  


Cloud stared at the kid–no, Sora. If he could remember he was Sora, he wouldn't be able to kill him.

  


He could feel Hades's eyes boring into his back. Hades wanted Sora dead. Why was a mystery to Cloud. Not to be rude, but Sora and his two companions looked fairly weak.

  


"That's guy'll be tough to beat," he remembered hearing the goat-man say to Sora as he had passed the pair to head for his match. A small smile flickered across his tired face.

  


The match would begin soon. Just two more obstacles between him and his light now. Only Sora and that Hercules chump!

  


_"Kill the boy,"_ he heard whisper in his mind. Cloud's grip tightened on his bandaged blade. He would not kill Sora! He would not murder a little boy, even if Sora would probably resent being thought of as little!

  


Just then, the match started, and Sora towards him baring his weapon. Cloud lifted his own sword and used his special rush attack against Sora. Sora yelped in pain, along with his two comrades, but quickly pulled himself back together, determination gathering in his eyes. Cloud quickly tried rushing again, but grunted in pain when he felt Sora's weapon strike his stomach. As he was thrown off-balance, he felt more slashes on his arms and few bangs on his legs from that stupid duck's staff. Cloud gathered his thoughts quickly and counterattacked, surprising Sora. Smirking, he rushed at Sora again before Sora could block his attack. Sora hit the ground groaning, and Cloud plunged his blade into the ground, greatly wounding his three opponents.

  


Cloud turned around, thinking the trio would give up, and was surprised to turn and see Sora standing up, green sparks around him. Cloud looked for the source, and saw that his duck companion had healed him. "Thanks Donald!" Sora called out, and before Cloud could comprehend what had happened, Sora was attacking him with a vicious mixture of jump attacks and swipes. Cloud angrily tried to rush at him, but Sora blocked him and threw him off-balance. Weakly, Cloud tried to jump up and plunge his sword into the ground to harm the three "heroes," but, though he got the duck and dog, Sora dodged his attack and hit him one last time causing Cloud to fall to the ground. His last thought as he saw the evil black dog Cerberus appear was, "I'm sorry–Aerith."

  


***

  


Cloud awoke groggily in the Coliseum lobby. "What happened?" he croaked.

  


Phil looked down at him, a mixture between anger, worry, and stress apparent on his face, "You're finally up, huh, trouble maker!"

  


"What happened?" Cloud repeated, irritated, as he slowly raised himself up.

  


"You lost your fight to Sora, and then Cerberus attacked," a man wearing armor replied, crossing his arms and standing by Phil, "You're lucky to be alive."

  


Cloud closed his eyes, his defeat fresh in his mind now, "Where's Sora?"

  


"Out there! Fighting Cerberus!" the goat-man yelled. "He's going to get himself killed!"

  


"Don't worry Phil, I'm sure those three will be fine," the man that had to be Hercules replied. He looked uncertain and worried though.

  


Cloud sighed deeply and slowly headed for the door. "Hey!" Phil called, "Where're you going! Aren't you worried at all?" Cloud didn't hear him though. He was engulfed by darkness.

  


"Why you little!" Phil said nastily, starting to run after him before being stopped by Hercules, "Herc! What're you doing? Put me down!"

  


"Just let him go Phil, there's nothing you or I can do," Hercules said seriously, staring after Cloud.

  


"Hmph!" was all Phil had to say to that.

  


Outside, Cloud sat on the steps leading out of the Coliseum. His thoughts were all mixed up. He thought of Aerith's face, and his promise to her, but his thoughts would suddenly shift to Sora and his friends, and to the monster they were fighting. He felt lost, confused, and hopeless. How was he going to reach Aerith now? Where was his light? Did she even exist? Or was she just a dream? A cheer went up from the Coliseum, and Cloud raised his head. "Well," he said softly, "at least Sora has triumphed." And then he put his head back in his hands and only tried not to think.

  


~*~

  


"Hey are you alright?"

  


Cloud lifted his head up in surprise, "Yeah."

  


Sora looked at him a little uncomfortably, "So, why did you go along with him anyways?

  


Cloud closed his eyes pensively; he had known that this question would be coming. "I'm looking for someone. Hades promised to help." He slowly started to stand up, "I tried to exploit the power of darkness, but it backfired." He turned his eyes toward the statue, and the light reflected off of it seemed to flow into his eyes and down to warm his cold and hurt heart. "I fell into darkness, and couldn't find the light."

  


"You'll find it," Sora said confidently. Cloud turned his gaze from the statue to Sora, surprised to see sympathy in his eyes. "I'm searching too," Sora continued.

  


Cloud continued to peer into Sora's eyes, searching to see if he was telling the truth, "For your light?"

  


Sora nodded, and Cloud suddenly saw a small beam of light pierce through his darkness, and he felt hope again. _"I will find Aerith," _he thought as he walked up to Sora and handed him a gift out of gratitude. "Don't lose sight of it," he said as he walked off full of renewed hope and confidence.

  


Sora watched Cloud and yelled after him, "How about a rematch sometime? Fair and square, no dark powers involved."

  


Cloud smiled a small and secret smile, flipping his hair, "I think I'll pass........." _".........for now,"_ he added silently.

  


~*~

  


A/N: Argh! This was a hard chapter to write! I'm not very good at writing about Cloud! Anyways, hope you liked it, and REVIEW!!!!!!!

  


~(_)Kitty Luver(_)~


	5. Aerith's Depression

___***WARNING!!! THIS CHAPTER IS RATED PG!!! ONE BAD WORD USED MULTIPLE TIMES!!!***_

  


Finding My Light

Chapter 5: Aerith's Depression

  


Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts; it belongs to Disney and Squaresoft. Also, I don't own the song "I'm With You" as it belongs to Avril Lavigne.

  


A/N: Hey! I'm still here, believe it or not! I have not given up on this fic, and don't plan to! Anyways, this is going to be a long (well, in my opinion long) author's note, so just bear with me!

  


1st: _READ THIS!!!_ Ok, I've changed a word in Avril Lavigne's song to make it fit the story, so if you notice the change, please be understanding! I'm just putting this in because I know if I don't, I will get flamed! Also, I didn't use the whole song! So flamers, you have been warned!

  


2nd: _THANK YOU, THANK YOU, AND THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!_ When I came home and saw all of the reviews I got on the last chapter, I literally skipped down the upstairs hall that overlooks our family room (it's a two-story family room) yelling down to my cat every second or so how many reviews I had received on that chapter alone! You will never know how happy I was! _THANK YOU, THANK YOU, AND THANK YOU!!!!!!!_

  


3rd: I'm sorry about chapters being slow, but I've been kind of busy and tired lately! So please excuse me for taking so long to update, but I'll try harder from now on! Honest!!!

  


Well, in the immortal words of Porky Pig, "That's all, folks!" On with the story!

  


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

  


Aerith stared dispiritedly at the bright full moon high in the sky, eyes brimming with tears that she refused to let fall. "Where are you Cloud?" she whispered desperately.

  


___I'm standing on the bridge_

_I'm waiting in the dark_

_I thought that you'd be here by now_

_There's nothing but the rain_

_No footsteps on the ground_

_I'm listening but there's no sound_

  


Aerith pulled her coat around her tighter before running on further toward the Second District. Her stick was by her side to defend her, and her eyes were continued to fill with the tears that refused to let descend onto her cheeks. She had to be alone. Leon would only sigh exasperatedly, hiding his own depression and worry if she talked to him, and Yuffie—well, she would only whisper to Leon questions and suggestions, receiving only shrugs and a mere nod or shake of the head in return. No. She had seen this come about many times before, and she just needed to get away.

  


While Aerith had been lost in her sadness, her feet had instinctively carried her to the Gizmo Shop. She looked back to see if she had left any trace of her route, but the cold, emotionless cement left no sign of any muddy footprints. None could have her leave anyway, Aerith reminded herself silently, because the rain had muffled the sound of her feet pounding the pavement.

  


She tread lightly through the abandoned building to the ladder, pulling herself up rung by rung, and taking great care not to drop her stick.

  


At the top, she waited expectantly for a group of Heartless to appear, but when none did she had to remind herself that Sora did seal the Keyhole, causing the Heartless to flee for a short time. She pushed the tears back a little easier as she remembered…

  


*FLASHBACK*

  


Cid, Aerith, Yuffie, and Leon each held their breath as they heard the Gizmo Shop bell ring for a third time in a row. All of them sighed when nothing happened, but, in their hearts, none gave up hope…

  


Later, Sora returned and told of how the Keyhole had successfully been sealed. Aerith was positive at that moment that Sora would save all of them; he would restore all of the worlds and lead her own dear Cloud back to her for all of eternity.

  


*END FLASHBACK*

  


Aerith smiled as she remembered how deeply she had been filled with hope and security. For days after that her conversations consisted only of Sora's success, Hallow Bastion, and Cloud. Her smile grew wider as she recalled this, and the tears receded.

  


Then her thoughts shifted over to Leon and Yuffie, and her smile faded. As Aerith recalled the overheard conversation between the two, the tears came back from their hidden deaths, poised to fall at any small sign of weakness.

  


*FLASHBACK*

  


"I'm worried about Aerith, Squall," Yuffie said, sitting herself in the chair across from him at the table. Aerith hovered at the door, feeling slightly guilty for eavesdropping.

  


"It's Leon," was the only response Yuffie received. She frowned.

  


"I'm serious! You know she so excited because of how well Sora's doing, but I'm scared that, well, she might get…disappointed because…well…er…you know…"

  


"Because Cloud is probably dead," Leon offered emotionlessly, his eyes closed. Yuffie (and Aerith from outside) stared at him.

  


"We have to face facts Yuffie," Leon continued, opening his eyes, which showed the only a possible hint of emotion. "All who survive the destruction of their world either come here or perish. We've searched all of Traverse Town for him countless times, and he's not here."

  


Leon looked up at Yuffie, revealing his sad, somber eyes, "Cloud's dead Yuffie. We have to face the facts." He switched his gaze over to the cup in his hand, "And soon, Aerith will too."

  


Those words echoed through Aerith's mind as she raced away from the house.

  


*END FLASHBACK*

  


Aerith gazed out at the fountain where Sora had said the Keyhole was, shivering in the intense cold. As she finally allowed to the tears to fall, she looked up and whispered to the heavens once again, "Where are you Cloud?"

  


___Isn't anyone trying to find me_

_Won't somebody come take me home_

_It's a damn cold night_

_I'm trying to figure out this life_

_Won't you take me by the hand_

_Take me somewhere new_

_I don't know where you are_

___But I, I'm with you_

  


Aerith quickly stepped away from the edge and prepared to fight as she heard voices approaching. There wasn't anyone nearby though; did somebody realize she had gone?

  


___I'm looking for a place_

_Searching for a face_

_Is anybody here I know_

_Cause nothing's going right_

_And everything's a mess_

_And no one likes to be alone_

  


What if the voices were Leon and Yuffie? Aerith hesitated. She wanted to be alone, but she didn't want to worry Leon or Yuffie. 'If only Cloud were here…' she thought, and then, 'Where are you Cloud? What about your promise to me?'

  


___Isn't anyone trying to fine me_

_Won't somebody come take me home_

_It's a damn cold night_

_I'm trying to figure out this life_

_Won't you take me by the hand_

_Take me somewhere new_

_I don't know where you are_

___But I, I'm with you_

  


__Yuffie bit her lip as she ran up to Leon, "I'm getting really worried Squall! I can't find her anywhere!"

  


Leon sighed exasperatedly, "It's Leon." Yuffie stared at him incredulity, her eyes hardening.

  


"You damn idiot! We're out here searching for one our best friends, and all you can think about is how I called you Squall and not Leon?! I can't believe you!"

  


Leon began to become angry at this, "Hey! You're the one being the damn idiot! We'll never find Aerith if we're so worried we can't think! Don't be yelling at me Yuffie Kisaragi!"

  


To Leon's amazement, the fire of rage left Yuffie's eyes and was replaced by a look of deep sadness, "I know. It's just…" Yuffie sighed and turned her face down, tears gathering in her eyes, "It's just that it's all my fault she ran off. If I hadn't brought up the probability of Cloud being dead, none of this would have happened…"

  


Leon, to Yuffie's amazement grabbed Yuffie by her shoulders and gave her a small shake to get her attention. When she had turned her bewildered eyes up to meet his, he said almost tenderly, "Yuffie, you can't blame yourself. It's not your fault. We all knew that chance, even Aerith. But she refused to give up hope or blame herself, and you can't either."

  


"It's just so hard sometimes," Yuffie said, a few fat tears winding down her cheek, "I try to keep up hope, but it's so hard when there's nothing I can do to help fight—"

  


"That's right," Leon said, in the same tone. "There's nothing you can do physically, but you can keep up hope and wish. Look!" he said, suddenly pointing to a shooting star up in the sky, "Make a wish!"

  


Yuffie closed her eyes, and made a silent wish for everything to go back to the way it was before the Heartless. Leon smiled at her while she made her wish before turning his eyes back up to the star, silently wishing the same thing. He turned his gaze back to her, and Yuffie smiled back at him. "What'd you wish for?" he asked, even though he already knew.

  


Yuffie's grin became more mischievous "Well, I could tell you…but then I'd have to kill you so that it would come true!" she said, disrupting the tender moment between the two. Leon just rolled his eyes, smiling to himself and happy because she had returned, more or less, back to normal.

  


"So," he said, returning to his usual emotionless tone of voice, "Where is Aerith's favorite place?"

  


Yuffie thought a moment and smiled eagerly when she remembered, "Up by the Gizmo Shop! By the bell!"

  


*** MEANWHILE ***

  


Aerith returned her probing gaze up to the sky and watched as she saw a shooting star flash by. Deciding that it wouldn't hurt, she made a wish, a wish for everything to go back to the way it was, for her to be able to see her Cloud again. Suddenly, she felt a warm, tender glow deep in her heart. Putting both hands to her heart, Aerith whispered, "What? What's this?" She shifted her gaze back up to the stars, "Is Cloud alive? Can I feel him here, in my heart?" She remembered how Sora had mentioned, without detail, how he had felt Kairi's presence in him; Sora had even said that he had seen Kairi a few times! Aerith smiled to herself; indeed, she wouldn't ever give up hope. Cloud had never failed in a promise to her ever, and his last promise to her still ringed in her ears: "Remember Aerith! No matter where you end up, I will find you!" 'And I will wait patiently for you Cloud Strife,' she vowed silently.

  


Suddenly, she heard a voices coming up the ladder, voices belonging to Leon and Yuffie! Aerith watched as Yuffie jumped off the ladder and ran over to give her a hug.

  


"Aerith! I'm so sorry! I didn't know that you were there, and, and, and what would I do if I didn't have you to talk to! I'd go insane if it was just me and Squall!"

  


Leon grunted irately, "It's Leon! Get it right for once, will you?" Yuffie just stuck her tongue out at him.

  


"Er, I'm really sorry you guys," Aerith said downcast, "but I just needed to be alone to think and all…"

  


"It's ok," Yuffie replied, "and _Leon_ and I are really sorry about the whole Cloud thing. Can you forgive us?"

  


"I don't need to," Aerith said with a small, secretive smile.

  


"Why?" both Yuffie and Leon asked.

  


"Oh," Aerith said with that same smile, "just because I know you're wrong. Cloud's alive; I can feel it!" She put her hand to her heart and looked up at the stars.

  


Leon and Yuffie looked at Aerith and then at each other with wondering eyes, but just shrugged and viewed the beautiful stars of the serene night as well.

  


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

  


A/N: Ok, I hope everyone was ok about this chapter because I have a feeling that if any chapter gets a lot of flames, it'll be this one! I don't really know why I think that; I'm just a psycho!

  


I hope that was a pretty good start for some Leon/Yuffie! I just didn't want them to run into each other's arms or something because that would make them very out of character! And I have a feeling that at least one of the characters was out of character anyways!

  


Thanks to all of my reviewers:

  


Snowri Leonhart

Kauai Girl 23

dragon-reborn5

theyreallyloveme

hypr(*)angl

bek

Mel Meiko Mei Ling

aha-yahiko

Jade Stellar

Nomadff7

Alimoe

Strawberry

HalleyRose of Hollyrose

Specter Von Baren

  


Thanks and everyone _PLEASE REVIEW!!! PRETTY, PRETTY, PRETTY PLEASE!!!_


	6. Destiny's Victory

Finding My Light

Chapter 6:  Destiny's Victory

By:  Kitty Luver

Disclaimer:  Kingdom Hearts does not belong to me!  Squaresoft and Disney own it!

A/N:  Sorry I haven't updated for a while, but my stupid computer hasn't been working, so I'm going to have to work with Microsoft Word instead of Word Perfect on the other computer and see if my chapters upload correctly!  I should update faster now, maybe around once a week hopefully!  I honestly do plan to finish this story no matter what!!!

Thanks for all of the wonderful reviews!  I almost cried when I saw how many people actually enjoy my story!!  Your comments were encouraging, and that's why I'm updating before the cable guy finishes fixing my computer!  He's been here for a while, but my computer still doesn't have Internet access!!!  It's very frustrating!!

I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and I'm sorry if the battle scene isn't very good!  I'm not good at writing about the battles!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Leon sighed as he exited the ship that Cid had piloted to the Coliseum, "Hurry up Yuffie!"

"Calm down!  I'll be out in a minute Squall!" Yuffie called from the depths of the ship.

"It's Leon," he growled back before sighing once more and, turning to Aerith who had just jumped out, asked coldly, "How did I get into this mess again?"

Aerith just smiled her gentle smile and walked toward the gates, causing Leon to sigh a third time.  As she walked and viewed the two large warrior statues, she remembered the previous day…

*FLASHBACK*

"If Aerith doesn't get back soon I'm going to starve to death!" Yuffie moaned, plopping into one of the four chairs around the table.  Leon just grunted from his seat on another of the chairs, closing his eyes and retaining his emotionless appearance.  Both jumped slightly as the door burst forcefully open and Aerith arrived with cheeks pink from running and breathing heavily.  The slight mischievous glint in her eyes made Leon and Yuffie gulp mentally, but both just shrugged it off.  Leon went back to closing his eyes emotionlessly while Yuffie bounded over to Aerith, yanking the bags out of her arms and rummaging wildly through them for snacks, Aerith laughed and proceeded to unpack the groceries while Leon continued his previous lack of actions and Yuffie munched on a bag of chips she had unearthed.  Aerith broke the silence first; "I had an interesting shopping trip today."

"Really?" Yuffie said through a mouthful of her potato chips.  Leon opened one eye suspiciously; he didn't know where the conversation was headed, but he figured it couldn't be good for him.

"Yes," Aerith said cheerfully, beginning to prepare dinner, "I saw a poster on my way out of the grocery store that caught my eye.  There's going to be another tournament at the Coliseum tomorrow."

Leon closed his eye, trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together in his head.

"Really?  Who's signed up?" Yuffie asked curiously.  Leon wondered also.  He had seen the sign earlier that sheet, and the sheet had been filled up except fro one spot.  One spot…

"Oh, a bunch of Heartless, and Sora of course," Aerith said, cutting vegetables.

"That's nice," Yuffie commented without interest, trying to get all of the potato chip crumbs into her mouth.

One spot…wait!  Leon's eyes flew open as he figured out what Aerith had done, just as he heard Aerith calmly say, "They were looking for someone to fill up the last position, so I signed the two of you up together.  It'll be a chance for the two of you to test your training together."

"What!?" was shouted by a furious Leon and a bewildered Yuffie, who then began to cough on her chips.

"What's so wrong?" Aerith asked with genuine innocence.

Leon was about to start in about how it wasn't possible when Yuffie burst out, "I just can't believe it!  This is great!  I finally get to enter a tournament and show my worth!"  She turned eagerly to Leon, "Isn't it exciting?  We're going, right?"

All of Leon's arguments died right there; he didn't know why, but he couldn't bear to let her down.  Trying to maintain part of his dignity, he muttered a, "Fine," and marched off.  Behind him, he didn't see Yuffie's surprised stare and Aerith's knowing smile as she went back to preparing the dinner.

*END FLASHBACK*

Aerith's smile brightened at the memory; everything was going as she had meticulously planned.  After realizing how perfect Leon and Yuffie were for each other (at least in her eyes), she had decided to play matchmaker.  When she had seen the sign outside of the grocery store, she knew that it was the perfect opportunity to bring the two closer.  They were off to a good start already according to what Yuffie had told Aerith about how Leon had comforted her when Aerith was missing.  Aerith giggled, thinking, _'Leon may try to pretend that he doesn't care, but it's obvious that he does.'_

"What's so funny?" Yuffie asked as she caught up to Aerith, Leon trailing behind.

"Nothing!"  Aerith replied, and the trio continued along to the gate.  There, Leon and Yuffie handed their passes over and were directed toward the arena to wait for their first match, while Aerith shuffled along with the crowds to the stands.  (A/N:  I wanted Aerith to be able to watch Leon and Yuffie, so I made the stands full of people unlike in the game!)

Aerith watched happily as Leon and Yuffie won all of their matches; they worked perfects as a team, covering and supporting each other always.  She viewed Sora's battles with excited interest.  The young Keyblade master had improved his fighting skills immensely, and she was certain that he would be a tough opponent for Leon and Yuffie.  Finally, the final battle arrived, and Aerith eagerly awaited the outcome of the battle between her friends and Sora's group.

~*~ (A/N:  This basically means **_meanwhile_**.)

"This is awesome!" Yuffie shouted enthusiastically as she bounced off the field ahead of Leon.  "Aren't you having fun Squall?"

"It's Leon," he replied shortly without much conviction; his mind was on the upcoming fight with Sora.

"Yuffie scrunched up her face in worry, "What's wrong Leon?  Thinking about our match with Sora?"

Leon met her gaze and held it.  They had both witnessed Sora's fights, and neither could deny that he would be a tough opponent to beat.

"You know," Yuffie said into the silence, "it would be wonderful if he beat us.  Because, it would mean that—that—"

"That he's worthy of the title of Keyblade master and of liberating all of the worlds from the threat of the Heartless," Leon finished for her.

"More or less," Yuffie said with a small smile.

Leon returned it with his own small smile, "Let's not take it easy on him though.  We'll give him all we've got in order for him to prove his worth, right?"

Yuffie's smile widened, and her stomach flip-flopped at the sight of his rare smile.  "Right," she replied and followed him out to the arena.

"Hey Leon!  Hey Yuffie!" Sora called out when he saw the two approach.  Donald and Goofy turned around and waved.

"Hey Sora," Yuffie called back cheerfully, "Don't expect us to take it easy on you just because you're a kid and our friend!"

Sora laughed, "I won't!"

"Now is the time for you to prove your worth as the Keyblade master, Sora," Leon said in a grave voice.  "Are you ready?"

Sora's face turned serious and he nodded determinedly, "I'm going to beat both of you inn order to prove my worth as the Keyblade master!"

"Then let the match begin," Leon said as a reply, and the final battle began.

Yuffie and Leon both rushed at Leon, but Donald and Goofy targeted Leon and blocked his attack.  Yuffie threw a few ninja stars at Sora, "Guess it's just you and me kid!"  Two hit him on his chest and shoulder, he grunted and stumbled as Yuffie flipped away from him.  As he advanced towards her once again, she threw another volley of starts, but he managed to deflect these, and Yuffie had to duck as one flew back towards her.  Sora used that to his advantage, and managed to land a few hits on her.  Yuffie recovered quickly though, and managed to back flip and cartwheel away to safety.

~*~

While Yuffie had been battling Sora, Leon had been trying to defeat Donald and Goofy.  The two had also grown considerably, and, while Leon wasn't having any particular trouble holding his own, they were keeping him on his toes.  He deflected another shield attack from the dog knight while a fire attack from the duck sorcerer grazed his shoulder.  He tired to manipulate the battle towards a position where he could help Yuffie who was having trouble with Sora, but she kept vaulting away to avoid Sora's attacks.  Yuffie was visibly tiring, and he knew it wouldn't be long before Sora defeated her.  Spurred on by some unknown emotion, Leon doubled in his efforts to help Yuffie.

~*~

Above the battle, in the stands, Aerith watched the fight with a vigilant eye.  She noted the frustration and despair Leon appeared to be feeling as he kept trying to help Yuffie and she kept having to jump away.  Sora's group had an effective strategy:  Donald and Goofy kept Leon occupied while Sora defeated Yuffie first.  That way, Sora wouldn't have to worry about Yuffie's ninja stars harming him while he fought with Leon.  Aerith smiled; although she supported her friends, she secretly prayed that Sora, with the help of Donald and Goofy, would win.  She knew that Leon and Yuffie were also secretly wishing for the same thing for the same reason:  to be assured that Sora was strong enough to fulfill the role that destiny had presented him with.  Out on the arena just then, Yuffie fell.  "Yuffie!" Aerith cried out, and she struggled against the crowds to get to the arena to help her friend.

~*~

Sora had just dodged another torrent of Yuffie's ninja stars and dealt her a hard blow when Yuffie fell, her last words before she blacked out, "Just…give me…a second…"

"Yuffie!" Leon yelled, using all of his strength to force both Donald and Goofy with a powerful swipe of his Gunblade.  He ran over to where Yuffie had fallen.  Thankfully, she had only blacked out, and there weren't any serious injuries.  Comforted, he turned to Sora and changed his sword from his regular Gunblade into a powerful and elongated sword.  "Now it's my turn," he said calmly before beginning his attack.

~*~

"Please, you must let me through!  My friend is _hurt_ out there!" Aerith begged the goat-man gatekeeper.

Phil just shook his head, "I can't let you out there miss."

Aerith sighed frustrated, "Why not?!  I just told you, she's injured and needs help!"

"Three words," Phil said, "Too dangerous!"

"That's two words!" she cried exasperatedly.  Her hand reached for her staff; she didn't want to fight the gatekeeper, but Yuffie needed her.  Someone grabbed her arms at that moment though, and stopped her from grabbing her weapon.

"I'm sorry miss, but I'm afraid that I cannot let you go out to the arena and get yourself hurt," Hercules said, holding her in a position that didn't allow her to move or fight back.

"Put me down!  I need to help Yuffie!" Aerith begged.

"I'll let you go as soon as the battle's over," Hercules promised.  Aerith sighed again; that would have to do.  Besides, it wasn't as though she was in a position to disagree anyway.

~*~

Out on the arena, Leon had been putting up a tough fight.  He kept lashing out at the trio so ferociously that it was almost impossible for them to get close enough to hit him.  As a result, they used magic against him, replenishing themselves with ethers when they ran out of magic.  Sora had been studying Leon's attack style; he realized that when Leon jumped to plunge his sword down at one of them, he had a rather weak defense.  If he could just dodge the attack, he could get close enough to strike Leon with his Keyblade.  And, because Leon was looking tired, he could probably end the fight with one attack if he made his blows count.  He didn't mention his plan to Donald and Goofy for fear of losing the element of surprise, but waited for his chance to attack.

~*~

Leon was wearing down, and so he decided to end the fight as quickly as he could.  He jumped up high into the air and brought his sword to point down at Sora.  He gasped as Sora rolled and dodged his attack.  Unable to stop his attack, his sword plunged into the ground, and he was defenseless for a few moments; however, he knew that those few moments would be all that Sora needed to defeat him.  He tried to fight back, but Sora's blows knocked the rest of his energy out of him.  His last words before he blacked out were, "No…I can't…lose…"

~*~

"Yuffie!  Leon!" Aerith yelled as she rushed out towards her friends.  True to his word, Hercules had allowed her to go out to the arena as soon as Leon had fallen.  Both were near each other, as Leon had seemed to fight near her, as though to protect her after she fainted to make up for the fact that he couldn't protect her before.  She quickly began to check to see if their injuries were serious and was reassured when she saw they could be easily healed with her magic.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy fidgeted behind her.  "Um, will they be okay?" Sora asked.

Aerith turned and smiled at him, "They'll be fine Sora.  You have proved that you _are _worthy of the title of Keyblade master.  Now you should go; there are many worlds left that are in need of your aid."

Sora nodded firmly and turned to head off.  Aerith smiled, and turned to heal Yuffie's wounds when Leon groaned and woke up, muttering Yuffie's name.  Hearing him stir and say Yuffie's name, Aerith turned to him and said, "Stay still until I heal your wounds!"

Leon obeyed her and asked, "Where's Yuffie?"

Aerith quickly cast her curaga spell and answered, pleased that he was worried, "She's right next to you.  She'll be fine once I cure her."  Leon nodded, stood up, and watched as she cured Yuffie.

Yuffie groaned and sat up, "What happened?"

Leon closed his eyes, "We lost."

Yuffie blinked, "He beat us?"

Aerith nodded and smiled gently, "Yes.  He truly is worthy of being the Keyblade master."

Yuffie grinned, "Yeah, but it's still kind of disappointing!"  Aerith laughed while Leon just sighed.

"Let's go," Aerith said, "I'm hungry!"  She ran off ahead of them to give them a moment alone.

Yuffie turned slowly to Leon, "Sorry I was defeated so easily.  I did try my hardest, but…"

"It's okay," Leon said, slowly following behind Aerith, "I'm sorry I wasn't able to help you."

"Yeah, well, I guess we're even then," she said happily.  "And besides," she added, "this means we still have hope!  Maybe our world _will _be restored, and maybe Cloud and everyone else _will_ come back to us!"

"Maybe," was all Leon said, and the two walked to the ship in a comfortable silence.

~*~

As Cid's ship took off for Traverse Town, another ship _from_ that destination landed near by.  The door rolled back to reveal Cloud Strife.  He sighed; Aerith hadn't been at that Traverse Town place either.  He strolled around the Coliseum, watching as people cleaned up after the tournament.  He looked to see who had won, and wasn't surprised to see that Sora had.  Then, two names caught his eye, and he let out an audible gasp.  "Leon…Yuffie?" he muttered, checking again to make sure that his eyes were not deceiving him.  They weren't.  He ran into the lobby to find Hercules and Phil there, talking.

Phil turned and saw Cloud, "Hey, what do you want kid?"

Cloud looked at him desperately, "I need to know, did two people named Leon and Yuffie fight here today?"

"Yeah, so?" Phil asked, perplexed.

"What did they look like?"

"Well let's see now…the guy had long brown hair and some weird gun that he used like a sword, and the other girl dressed funny and had ninja stuff with her."

"Don't forget that other girl with them Phil," Hercules added.  "The one with the long brown hair dressed in pink.  She was friends with them and was trying to interfere with the fight."

"Oh yeah!" Phil said, "The one with the staff!  Good thing you stopped her Herc, or that dame might've been—"

"Do you know where they came from?" Cloud asked eagerly.

"No idea kid.  People ain't required to say where they come fro—hey!  Where're you going kid?" Phil yelled.

Cloud didn't hear him as he ran outside.  Aerith was alive!  And she had been there earlier!  He smile left his face at this thought though, and he slammed his head into the wall.  If only he hadn't gone to that stupid Traverse Town!  Then he would've seen his light!  It didn't matter now though, all that mattered was finding Aerith, his beautiful light.  He rushed over to sign up for the next tournament.  Maybe Leon and Yuffie would do the same!  As he signed his name, he though, _'Aerith, I will find you!  I promise!'_

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A/N:  Yay!  Cloud knows that Aerith's alive!!!  *grins*  This was a happy chapter!  Small Leon/Yuffie and happy Cloud and Aerith (though for different reasons since Aerith doesn't have solid proof that Cloud's alive)!!  Please review, it'll make me happy and will help me write the next chapter!  And thanks to the people who reviewed last time:

Tenas Xavier

Kauai Girl 23

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Thanks for all of your reviews!!  Please everyone:  review again!!!  It makes me happy!!!


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